03-15-2018, 07:36 AM
The problem for the TMT folks isn't primarily the religious argument; it is the environmentalist one. These folks are infinitely harder to deal with.
Environmentalists have a massively expansive agenda. (One of my objections is their persistent blocking of coastal recreation projects by claiming harm to shoreline ecosystems.)
Re Mauna Kea, it is easy for them to document environmental harm. Any building or road construction anywhere impacts the environment.
Environmentalist concerns + native Hawaiian sentiments on sacredness of Mauna Kea = Difficult to dismiss objections to further development on the mountain.
(Sometimes environmentalists are content to stay in the background on these issues. Make no mistake; they are there.)
Environmentalists have a massively expansive agenda. (One of my objections is their persistent blocking of coastal recreation projects by claiming harm to shoreline ecosystems.)
Re Mauna Kea, it is easy for them to document environmental harm. Any building or road construction anywhere impacts the environment.
Environmentalist concerns + native Hawaiian sentiments on sacredness of Mauna Kea = Difficult to dismiss objections to further development on the mountain.
(Sometimes environmentalists are content to stay in the background on these issues. Make no mistake; they are there.)